Triumphrat

TriplePete · 04-12-2008, 06:36 PM

My 2006 Sprint ABS front brakes feel mushy at first grab. It feels as if they're is air in the system. At initial pull of the lever, it goes pretty deep, second pump is half as deep. I flushed and bled the brakes thru both front calipers, but the problem still feels the same. This is my first experience with ABS - can anyone tell me if there are different procedures for bleeding brakes with ABS. Or is there something wrong with ABS it self?

Pcdabbler · 04-12-2008, 06:49 PM

It's not the ABS. The first pull effect is a problem shared by quite a few of us that Triumph refuse to acknowledge exisits. Mine is kept under control by periodically removing the calipers from the disk, and cleaning up the pistons, then lubing sparingly with caliper grease. I only need to do this once every six months, so it's a solution for me. Others have replaced the pistons with items from the 675. The 675 pistons have some sort of coating on them that prevents them from sticking to the seals, and retracting too far back into the caliper body. That's my theory. Six pot tokico conversions are popular too .. Have a search, we've flogged the horse to death on this one elsewhere...

TornadoST · 04-12-2008, 07:28 PM

That is exactly why I did the 6 piston Tokico upgrade on my 07. The mushy feeling got to be unnerving. It has nothing to do with the ABS because my lever pull is firm and consistent now with the 6 pot calipers. No more having to pump the brakes. There are a lot of threads on this forum about this mod for a reason. I got my calipers for $30 on ebay + cost of new EBC HH pads and it is the best mod I have done by far.

CLB · 04-12-2008, 07:57 PM

The problem seems to be the seals sticking to the pistons.

Try a simple experiment.
The back edge of the pads is accessible without removing anything. Grab the back edge of your pads and push them just a little outward or toward their respective caliper pistons. This breaks the seal stiction. You will have to pump the lever a bit to bring them back up tight.
Is the lever firm now? If yes, you might also want to remove the reservoir cap and bellows and reinstall them. That allows the bellows to retract and improves fluid flow.

F4sSprintST · 04-12-2008, 08:26 PM

Probably sticking seals, as described.

Mine didn't do it at first, but soon developed the problem

I tried the experiment of freeing the pistons, worked, but went back to soft 1st pull in about a week.

6 pots was my answer

TriplePete · 04-12-2008, 11:30 PM

Wow. I never even heard of this before. When I first started riding the bike (1300 miles) it was fine. Now at just 2000 miles, it's started.

Thanks guys.

SamaR · 04-12-2008, 11:49 PM

same problem was here, so Sprint sports 6-pots now!

TriplePete · 04-13-2008, 03:24 AM

Where is the best place to get those 6 pots? Are the caliper mounts standard for sportbikes?

airrider03 · 04-13-2008, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TriplePete

Wow. I never even heard of this before. When I first started riding the bike (1300 miles) it was fine. Now at just 2000 miles, it's started.

Thanks guys.

2000 miles is about right.
The seals pull the pistons back in, requiring greater pull to compensate.
When you fix them, they're beautiful, and last about 3000 miles. Then you do it again.
I clean/lube during tire changes every 3-5000 miles.

triumph_955_st · 04-13-2008, 10:15 AM

I posted a reply awhile back showing the caliper dis-assembled. If you are curious check it out.

http://www.triumphrat.net/sprint-for...brake-fix.html